Can treating apparatus



Dec. 1, 1936. R? HOMPSON 2,062,535

CAN TREATING APPARATUS.

Filed March 13, 1934 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVEAYITORV l/er f if fi m.

qiTT EY.

Dec; 1, 1936.

A. R. THOMPSON CAN TREATING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sh e'et 2 Filed March l5,1954 INVENTOR. i/er/ fi. 7304000. (52,5 54

, ATT EY Dec. 1, 1936.

CAN TREATING APPARATUS Filed March 13, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.l/arf. ff, Tfiagr/sarz.

A. R. THOMPSON I 2,062,535 v Dec. 1, 1936. A TH N FSOI 2,062,535

CAN TREATING APPARATUS Filed March 13, 1934 5 Sheets-Sheet 4ABHHHHHHHHHIIHHHHHHH IIII IIIIIIIDIIIIII 'JIIHRHHHRHHHHHHIHHHBIIIIIIIIIIDHEIIII,U

rr NEY Dec. 1, 1936. A. R. THCMPSON 2,062,535

CAN TREATING APPARATUi Filed March 13, 1934 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.l/zr/f fi. [Jam J00.

p 7- QATTO. EY."

Patented Dec. 1, 1936 PATENT OFFICE.

CAN TREATING APPARATUS Albert R. Thompson, San Jose, Calii'., assignoi:Food Machinery Corporation, San Jose, Call! a corporation of DelawareApplication March 13, 1934, Serial No. 115.279

20 Claims.

The present invention relates to can treating apparatus such as may beused in the canning industry for cooking, cooling, or otherwiseprocessing or treating canned goods and the like, and is particularlyconcerned with the provision of a novel form of apparatus of thischaracter for the continuous treatment of such goods, as distinguishedfrom socalled batch" treatment thereof.

.Among various undesirable features'which have may be mentioned theirgeneral inability to accommodate cans of various sizes or shapes, thusnecessitating duplication of equipment whenever canned goods of varioussizes or shapes is required to be processed. Moreover, the generallimited capacity of such machines in proportion to their size is wellknown, and this characteristic requires the provision of large andponderous equipment where any considerable capacity is desired.Obviously, the expense of such equipinent and the provision of adequatefloor space therefor present serious problems.

My invention is concerned with the provision of -a continuous treatingmachine in which the foregoing disadvantages, as well as various otherswell known to the art, are largely overcome. For.

example, it. may be stated that among the important objects of myinvention are the provision of a continuous treating apparatus which isof unusually large capacity, as well as the provisionof such anapparatus which is capable of handling any size or shape of cans.

It is also an important object to provide a ma chine of this. characterwhich... although having a large capacity, is. relatively small in sizeand occupies a minimum of floor space as compared with prior machines ofcomparable capacity.

- Another object is to provide a continuous treating machine throughwhich canned goods may be passed with substantially no agitation oftheir contents, this being a highly desirable feature,

particularly in the processing of certain kinds of I canned foodstufiswhich break down if they are over agitated during processing.

Another object is to provide a continuous treating machine through whichcanned goods may be passed without danger of abrasion 'to the canbodies, this being a disadvantage heretofore commonly met with. Theordinary tin cans in which .such a large proportion of comestibles aremarketed are customarily made of sheet iron over laid with a very thincoating of tin which is easily worn off, thereby exposing the sheetirontion, of a practical application 01 the invention body therebeneath,which not only make the cans unsightly, but exposes them to rust.

Still another object'is to provide a can treating apparatus throughwhich it is possible to pass the cans in indiscriminately timedarrangement, thereby eliminating the necessity for special timing orpositioning mechanism in feeding the cans thereto.

A further object is to provide a combined cooking and cooling apparatusin which the speed 01 1o operation of the cooker may be-variedindependently of the cooler and the feed, transfer and dischargedevices, whereby the cooking period may be varied without afiecting therateof operation of the latter devices or the cooler.

Still further objects are to provide a machine for the purpose describedin which the cans undergoing 'trea.tment'cannot jam the machineirrespectivg of their shape or condition; which'is of I greatlysimplified construction; is comparatively inexpensive to build andmaintain; and which is withal highly efllcient andthoroughlysatisfactory in operation. a a

With these objects and advantages in view, as well as numerous otherswhich will become more apparent as the description proceeds. it isbelieved that the invention may best be understood by reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an elevational view, partly in secas embodied in both acooker and cooler, which are illustrated as being interconnected for thecontinuous cooking and cooling of canned goods.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the same equipment.

Figure 3 is an irregular sectional view taken along the line 3-3 ofFigure 1. p

Figure 4 is a'detail view, partly-in elevation and partly in section,showingthe construction of the helical can advancing actuatingmechanism, this being the same in both the cooker and the cooler. 4

Figure 5 is a detail cross sectional view taken, for example, alongtheline 5-5 of Figure 3, illustrating in larger scale the construction ofthe helical canway and carrier bars and showing the manner in which thecans are supported and ad- 'vanced.

Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating the cycle of.

movement or the carrier bars.

Figure 7 is an elevational view of the driving gears and cam mechanismfor operating the heli-' cal carrier bars in both thecooker and thecooler.

[Figure 8 is a plan view of the gear and cam mechanism shown in Figure7. Figure 9 is an enlarged detail of the cam illustrated in Figs. land8.

I through.

, shell I is an upwardly dished plate 5 which serves The cooking unit Aincludes a vertical cylindrical shell I closed at its upper end by atransverse channel iron bridge member 2 and cover plates 3 and 4, thebridge member 2 also serving to support the'bearings for the shafting.shown mounted thereon. In the lower, portion of the as a bottom closurefor-the cooker, and above this plate there is disposeda steam coil 6which is suitably apertured to permit discharge of steam therefrom forthe purpose of heating the interior of the shell to a suitable cookingor sterilizing temperature.

The cooling unit also includes a vertical cylindrical shell I which maybe open at its top as shown, if desired, and extendingacross its top isanother channel iron bridge member 8 which also serves as a support forbearings, gears and shafting mounted thereon. An upwardly dished plate 9forms a bottom closure for the cooler, corresponding to the dished plate5 of the cooker.

Drain pipes are provided at I0 and II for discharging, respectively, thecondensed heating medium from the cooker and the used cooling liquidfrom the cooler.

The cans to be processed are introduced in indiscriminate order into thecooking or sterilizing. chamber within the cookershell through an inletopening I2 by means of a rotary feed disc I3 situated, in part, in theinlet opening. The feed disc I3 is mounted for operation on a verticalshaft I4 about. the center' of which the discrotates, and incoming cansmay be delivered to the feed ,disc, preferably in upright positions, bymeans .of a chute I5 from which they move onto the upper surface of thedisc for introduction into the cooker. The side walls of the chute I5are extended and curved as at I 6 and I! so as to deflect the incomingcans and cause them to move onto the upper extremity of a helical canwayI8, down which the cans are periodically advanced in step by stepmovement by a carrier mechanism presently to be described.

Situated at the lower'extremity of the cooker canway I8 and mounted on avertical shaft I9, disposed intermediate the cooker and the cooler,

is a rotary transfer disc 20 which projects on one side into the cookerthrough a discharge opening 2| in the cooker shell I and on the oppositeside into the .cooler through an inlet opening 22 inthe cooler shell I.is to transfer cans from the: lower extremity of the cooker canway tothe lower extremity of a similar helical canway 23 in the cooler, fromwhich point the cans are advanced upwardly over the cooler canway in thesame manner as they are advanced through the cooker. During the travelof the cans through the cooler they are subjected to the action of. acooling medium, which may be in the form of a showerof cooling water,discharged in sprays from' a shower pipe 24. disposed.

in the top portion-of the cooler.

Situated near the topand partly within the cooler, is a rotary dischargedisc 25 mountedon a vertical shaft 26. This discharge disc is disposedin registration with the upper extremity of the cooler canway andarranged to receive cans therefrom and to discharge them from the coolerby way of -a discharge chute 2'I.

The function of this disc The directions of rotation of the feed,transfer, and discharge discs l3, 20 and 25, respectively, are indicatedby suitable arrows in connection with each. These discs are connectedtogether through shafts 28, I9 and 30, respectively journalled insuitable sets of bearings 3I3I, 32-32 and 33-33, and the several bevelgears 34 to M, inclusive, are driven by an electric motor 42 through themedium of a chain .43 trained around the motor sprocket 44 and asprocket 45 mounted on a shaft 46; asecond chain 4I trained around asprocket 48 on shaft 46 and sprocket 49 on the outer end of a shaft 50which carries a bevel gear 5| on its inner end intermeshing with a bevelgear 52 keyed to the shaft 30.

Generally described, the can conveying mechanisms in the cooker andcooler include the canways I8 and 23, constructed to include a series oflongitudinally extendinginterstices or slots within whichoperate aplurality of movable can lifting and carrying members driven incircuitous paths, so that they alternately rise above the canways intosupporting engagement with the crowd of cans thereon to lift and carrythe cans bodily during their forward. movement, and then descend belowthe 'canways out of engagement with the .cans to leave the latterresting upon the canways during the rearward movement of the carriers,whereby the cans are periodically advanced over the canways in step bystep move-,

ment.

Inasmuch as the can conveying mechanisms in the cooker and cooler aresubstantially identical, a description of that in the cooker. willsuffice for both. As best seen in Figures 1, 3 and 5, the

canway I8 is made up of a series of concentrically extensive therewith.The movable carrier bars are mounted for operation by mechanism now tobe described in circuitous paths, so that they rise above the canways tolift and carry the cans bodily during their forward movement, anddescend below the canways out of engagement with the cans to leave thelatter resting upon the canwa'ys during the rearward movement of thecarrier bars."

As best seen in Figure 4, the carrier bars 56 are mounted upon aplurality of horizontal arms 51 projecting radially'from a series ofstacked hub members 58, the arms 51 being interspaced between thestationary brackets 54 and arranged at stepped elevations in helicalrelation, similar to the steps of a spiral stairway. The hubs 56 aremounted upon a vertical shaft or axle .59 extending axially of thecooker shell and may be interlocked with each other by means of lugs 60which project into complementary recesses in adjacent hubs, so-thatonlyone of the hubs needs shaft 59 to insure actuation 54 by means ofsuitable spacers 6|; and 62, re-

spectively, in order-to allow space for the movable illustrated inFigure 5, without interference between the arms 51 and the bottomsurfaces of the bars 53.

The driving mechanism for actuating the can carrier bars 56 is bestillustrated in Figures 7, 8

and 9, and comprises a cast base member or supporting frame 63, abearing 64, a chain sprocket 65, a beveled pinion 66, a b'evel'gear 61,a crank 68, a. cam member 69 having a slotted arm I6, and a camfollowermember II secured to the shaft 59 and having a slotted arm I2 andcarrying'a pair of cam rollers 13-13.

The sprocket 65 is driven continuously by a motor I4 through a variablespeedltransmission axisof gear 67 engages the slot Illa in the leverfarm I0 and causes that lever arm.to oscillate through an angle ofapproximately 28 degrees about the center of the shaft 59. Cam member69, being integral with lever arm III is likewise oscillated arcuatelythrough a similar angle about its vertical center, which is coincidentwith the axis ofshaft 59.' This cam member has a pair of oppositelyinclined cam faces 69a and 69b, upon which rest the cam rollers "I3-'I3respectively, which are carried by the follower 'II, and it will beapparent that oscillation of the cam 69 will result in alternatelylifting and lowering the follower 'II and the shaft 59 with it. It willalso be seenthat while the cam follower II is being repeatedly liftedand'lowered by the action of the cam, it is also being rotativelyoscillated arcuately about its vertical axis by the lever arm 12," whichis provided with an elongated slot 12a engaging a crank pin I8 carriedby and offset from the center of rotation of bevel gear 61.

The stacked hubs 58 rest upon the cam follower II, which may be providedwith a recess I9 engaging with the lug 60 on the lowermost hub.

The cycle of movement imparted to the can carrier bars 56 by theoperation of the driving mechanism just described may best be understoodby reference to Figure 6, in which their path of travel isdiagrammatically illustrated. In this figure the line designated byreference numeral 56a represents the quasi-elliptical path followed by apoint on the upper. surface of one of the carrier bars 56 throughout onecomplete cycle of thereby set the cans down on the stationary barsagain. It is to be observed that the major axis of the quasi ellipticalpath followed by the carrier bars is inclined from the horizontal in thedirection of inclination of the stationary bars 53, and the carriersmove over a relatively flat trajectory so that during the major portionof the forward travel of the carrier bars the cans are carried along ina descending path generally corresponding in pitch to that ofthe'canway.

The advantage of so moving the carrier bars, as

will be apparent, is that it minimizes the head space required for thecans so that the convolutions of the canway may be spaced as closelytogether as possible, thereby utilizing the capacity of the treatingchamber to maximum advantage.

The rearward or return movement of the carrier bars is along a pathextending entirely below the canway, so that during this period the cansremain at rest on the canway. As the carrier bars approach the end oftheir return movement they begin to rise again and their upper surfacescome flush with the canway just at the beginning of their next forwardmovement, whereupon the cans are again lifted free of the canway andadvanced another step, the cycle being successively repeated duringoperation of the machine.

It is believed that the construction and operation oflthe can conveyingmechanism and its associated driving mechanism, as provided in thecooker, will now be apparent, and it will be understood that thecorresponding mechanisms in the cooler are identical therewith, but aredriven in an opposite direction in order to advance the cans upwardlyalong the cooler canway instead of downwardly, as in the cooker. Thecorresponding cycle of movement of the can carriers in the cooler would,accordingly, be exactly the reverse of that shown in Figure 6. Power maybe supplied to the driving mechanism ,in the cooler from the shaft 46driven by chain be understood that so far as the functions to be Iperformed are concerned the path of movement might be rectangular orelliptical or some other form of cyclical or circuitous movement ifdesired, provided always that the carrier bars 56 rise above thestationary bars 53 during their forward movement and descend below thestationary bars during their return movement,and further provided thatthey do not rise above the stationary bars to such an extent as to causethe cans to strike the bars above. It will be obvious, therefore, thatthe particular drive mechanism disclosed may be modified, if desired,-or other forms of drive mechanisms might be provided which wouldimpartequivalent paths of movement to the carrier bars, and the term"circuitous? as used herein andin the claims is intended to be inclusiveof any such endless pathsirrespective of their particular shape, whetherit be circular, elliptical, rectangular, or otherwise. It is to beobserved that thecooker and cooler are driven independently of eachother, the former' from the motor 13 through the variable speedtransmission I5, and the latter from the motor 42, which may be of theconstant speed type. and

the feed, transfer and discharge discs I3, 26 and' pending uponthecharacter of the product, and 75 l in order to use the same equipmentfor processing a. variety of products of different cooking timerequirementsdt isnecessary to make provision for varying the cookingperiod.

While it has heretofore been proposed to vary the cooking period byvarying the speed of the cooker, it may be said that the maximumpermissive speed of cookers of the character heretofore generallyemployed is seldom more than 100 cans per minute, due to limitationsimposed by the character of the feed, transfer and discharge devices.This may be explained by the fact thatsuch apparatus is almostuniversally of the type in which the cans are advanced therethrough bypocketed conveyors, such as the well known reel and spiral construction,thus requiring that the cans be fed, transferred and discharged bypocketed devices operated in accurately timed relation therewith. Theresult is that the speed of the can advancing mechanism in the cookercannot be varied without correspondingly varying the speed of the coolerand the feed, transfer, and discharge devices in order to maintain theproper timing, and the latter devices are not ordinarily capable ofhandling more than 100 cans per minute without damaging the cans.Moreover, as the speed of the several mechanisms is increased, agitationof the can contents is likewise increased, and this may be highlyundesirablewhen delicate products such as certain berries,

and fruits are being processed. Furthermore it will be appreciated thatthe cooler must be of the maximum size required to provide a treatingpath therein of sufficient length to properly cool the cans whenoperated at the maximum speed, even though at lower speeds a smallercooler would sumce.

By reason of these diiliculties it has been the general practice in thepast to operate the cooker and cooler at a constant speed and to varythe cooking period by varying the length of the treating path throughthe cooker, as, for example, by providing it with a plurality of inletsor outlets through which the cans may be passed selectively so as toshunt them around a portion of the treating path.

In the construction provided by the present invention, it has been foundin actual practice that the can advancing mechanism will satisfactorilyoperate at rates ashigh as 600 cans per minute without damage to thecans or their contents,

and since the construction 'is such that the cans are received andconveyed through the cooker and cooler in indiscriminately timedarrangement, obviously there is no necessity for feeding, transferringor discharging the cans in timed relation to the advancing mechanism,consequently the cooker speed may be varied at will while permitting thecooler, and the feed, transfer and discharge discs to be driven at aconstant selected speed commensurate with the speed of the canning lineas a whole, and low enough to insure that no damage will result to thecans.

As illustrative of a practical example, the cooker may be constructed toprovide a twenty minute cook when driven at the rate of 150 cans perminute and the cooler, and feed, transfer and discharge discs may bedriven at a constant speed to handle 150 cans perminute. If it isdesired to decrease the cooking period to five. minutes, the cookerspeed may be increased independently of that of the rest of theapparatus to 600 cans per minute, by adjustment of the variable speedtransmission 15. Thus, while the same number of cans per minute continueto pass through theequipment, their rate of speed in passing through thecooker is quadrupled, thereby reducing the cooking period to one-quarterof the previous.

Summarizing the operation of the apparatus described, the cans to'betreated are fed into the cooker A preferably in upright positions bymeans of the feed disc l3, which delivers the cans directly onto theupper end of the helical cooker canway I8 in indiscriminate order, sothat they are received by the canway in indiscriminately timedarrangement. Inasmuch as the canway is of a width approximating theradius of the cooking chamber so that it may accommodate a plurality ofaverage sized cans transversely thereacross and its entire surface isavailable for the reception of cans, it will be observed thatsubstantially the maximum can holding capacity of the cooker isutilized. Moreover, the width of the canway is such that it is notlimited to any particular size or shape of can, and by reason of theabsence of obstructions in the path of the cans passing over the canwayit will be seen that there is little or no possibility of the cansjamming any of the cooker mechanism-to interfere with its operation,such as has heretofore sometimes occurred in prior machines of thischaracter.

As the cans are delivered to the canway l8, formed by the helicalsupporting bars 53, they rest stationary thereon until the cycle ofoperation of the drive mechanism actuates the cam 69 to'lift the helicalcan carrier bars 56 upwardly through the interstices between thestationary canway bars into supporting engagement with the cans,whereupon the cans are collectively lifted from the canway, asillustrated in Figure 5. Whiiethe carrier bars are thus being lifted,they are also rotated about the axis of the canway, so that the cans arecarried forward bodily over the canway until the carrier bars descendtherebelow near the end of their forward travel, whereupon the cans aredeposited back upon the canway where they again rest during the rearwardmove-, ment of .the carrier bars until the latter again teingage withthe cans to repeat the cycle of operaons.

As the cans are thus advanced over the canway away from the feed disc25, additional cans may be crowded continuously onto'the canway by thefeed disc to fill the space left by the preceding cans until the entirecanway is filled, the continuous repetition of the cycle of operationsdescribed resulting in the periodical and collective advancement of thecans bodily down the canway in step by step fashion by beingsuccessively lifted, carried forward along the canway a short distanceand set down upon the canway in recurrent 'cycles. The stream of cans isthus moved downwardly and helically through the cooker to the point ofdischarge in such manner that their contents receive a minimum ofagitation, which, as heretofore pointed out, is frequently undesirablein the processing of certain kinds of foodstuffs. Moreover, in addition,there can be no.

. cooking period ofdesired length, this being accomplished bymanipulation of the hand wheel 17 to adjust the variable speedtransmission 15.

As the cans reach-the lower end of the cooker canway they are deliveredupon the upper surface of the rotating transfer. disc 20, which feedsthem into the cooler B through the cooler inlet opening 22 and onto thelower end of the cooler canway 23. Here the cans are again picked up andbodily carried upwardly over the cooler canway in periodical step bystep fashion in the same manner as they were previously advanced throughthe cooker, the canway in the cooler and its associated can advancingmechanism being substantially identical with that in the cooker, asheretofore stated. As the cans are discharged from the upper end of thecooler canway they are re-,

ceived by the discharge disc 25, which delivers them into the chute 21,which directs them to any point desired.

The speed of operation of the can advancin mechanism in the cooler maybe selected so that the cans pass through the cooler in the period oftime required for the degree of cooling treatment desired, and is in noway affected by variations in the Speed of the cooker, and the feed,transfer and discharge discs being driven from the cooler drive aredriven at a speed corresponding to that of the cooler.

new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said chamber, cancarrying means associated with said canway for transporting canstherealong, and means for operating said can carrying means into and outof supporting engagement with cans-on said canway to successively liftthe cans from the canway, carry them bodily thereover, and lower themback onto the canway in recurrentcycles.

2. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically dis.- posed helical canway in said chamber,can carrying means associated with said canway for transporting canstherealong, and means for elevating, lowering, and longitudinallyoscillating said can carrying means with respect to the canway, andintimed relation to cause said can carrying means to rise and fallbeneath cans on said canway to successively lift them from the canway,carry the" bodily thereover, and lower themback onto the canway inrecurrent cycles.

3. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said'chamber, cancarrying means associated with said canway for transporting canstherealong, and means for operating the can carrying means over acircuitous path into and out of supporting engagement with cans on saidcanway to successively lift the cans from the canway, carry them bodilythereover, and lower them back onto the canway in recurrent cycles. I

4. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said chamber, cancarrying means associated with said canway for transporting canstherealong, and means for operating said can carrying means over acircuitous path to carry the same alternately above and below saidcanway whereby to liftv and carry the cans bodily over the canway instep by step movement.

5. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helicalcanway in said chamber, cancarrier means associated with said canway for transporting canstherealong, and drive means for vertically reciprocating said cancarrier means and. rotatively oscillating the same about the axis ofsaid canway to repeatedly lift, rotate forwardly, lower, androtatebackwardly said can carrier means relative to thecanway whereby tosuccessively lift the cans from the canway,

carrythem bodily thereover,; and lower them back onto the canway inrecurrent cycles.

6. In a can treatingapparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a. vertically disposed helical canway in said chamber, cancarrier means associated with said canway for transporting canstherealong, and means for imparting compound vertical reciprocation androtative oscillation to the can carrier means about the axis of saidcanway, to cause said can carrier means to move in a cyclical pathextending above and below said canway, whereby-to lift and carry thecans bodily over .the canway in successive periodic steps.

'7. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said chamber, aver- V tically disposed helical can carrying device co- Having nowdescribed my invention and in what manner the same may be used, what Iclaim as.

axially associated with said canway for transporting cans therealong,and drive means for vertically reciprocating said can carrying deviceand rotatively oscillating the same about the axis of said canway torepeatedly lift, rotate forwardly, lbwer, and rotate backwardly said cancarrying device relative to the canway whereby to successively lift thecans from the canway, carry them bodily thereover, and lower them backonto the canway in recurrent cycles;

. 8.v In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining .a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said chamber uponwhich a plurality of cans may be supported in indiscriminately timedarrangement, and means for uniformly advancing said cans along saidcanway.

9. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical can conveying mechanism insaid chamber formed by a plurality of helically trending bars arrangedto support a group of cans thereon in indiscriminately timedarrangement, and means for imparting relative up and down andlongitudinal movement to certain of said bars with respect to theothers, for advancing cans bodily therealong.

10. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in, said chamber uponwhich a plurality of cans may be-supported'in indiscriminately timedarrangement, can carrying means associated with said canway forcollectively transporting said cans there ong, and

means for. operating said can carryi g means into and out of supportingengagement with the cans on said canway to successively and collectivelylift the cans from the canway, carry them bodily thereover,. and lowerthem back onto the canway in recurrent cycles.

11. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chamber'therewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said chamber foraccommodating a group of cans thereon in indiscriminately timedarrangement, can carrying means associated with said canway for collectively transporting said cans therealong, and means for operating saidcan carrying means over a circuitous path to carry the same alternatelyabove and below said canway into and out of supporting engagement witha. group of cans thereon whereby to successively and col-v lectivelylift the cans from the canway, carry them bodily thereover, and lowerthem back onto the canway in recurrent cycles.

12. In a can treating-apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically dis.-

posed helical canway in said chamber for accommodating a group of cansthereon in indiscrimiiately timed arrangement, can carrier meansassociated with said canway for collectively transporting said canstherealong, and drive means for vertically reciprocating said cancarrier means and rotatively oscillating the same about the axis of saidcanway to repeatedly lift, rotate forwardly, lower, and rotatebackwardly said can carrier means relative to the canway whereby tosuccessively and collectively lift the cans from the canway, carry thembodily thereover, and lower them back onto the canway in recurrentcycles.

13. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said chamber foraccommodating a group of cans thereon in indiscriminately timedarrangement, a vertically disposed helical can carrying device coaxiallyassociated with said canway for collectively transporting said canstherealong, and drive means for vertically reciprocating said cancarrying device and rotatively oscillating the same about the axis ofsaid canway to repeatedly lift, rotate forwardly, lower, and rotatebackwardly said .can carrying device relative to the canway whereby tosuccessively and collectively lift the cans from the canway, carry thembodily thereover, and lower them back onto the canway in recurrentcycles.

14. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical grate-like canway in saidchamber for accommodating a group of cans thereon in indiscriminatelytimed arrangement, can carriers mounted for operation through theinterstices in said canway for collectively transporting said canstherealong, and means for elevating,.

lowering, and longitudinally oscillating said can carriers with respectto the canway, and in timed relation to cause said can carriers to riseand fall beneath cans on said canway to successively and canway to causesaid can carriers to move in a cyclical path extending above and belowsaid canway into and out of supporting engagement with a group of cansthereon whereby to lift and carry the cans collectively and bodily overthe canway in successive periodic steps.

16. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said chamberincluding a plurality of helically trending parallel spaced cansupporting bars for supporting a group of cans thereon inindiscriminately timed arrangement, avertically disposed helical cancarrier associated with said canway for collectively transporting saidcans therealong, said can carrier including a plurality of helicallytrending parallel carrier bars interposed in the intervening spacesbetween said can supporting bars, and means for operating said carrierbars in a circuitous path to carry the same alternately above and belowsaid can supporting bars into and out of supporting engagement with agroup of cans thereon whereby to successively and collectively lift thecans from the supporting bars, carry them bodily thereover, and

lowerthem back onto the supporting bars in recurrent cycles.

17. In a can treating apparatus, a shell defining a treating chambertherewithin, a vertically disposed helical canway in said chamberincluding a plurality of helically trending parallel spaced cansupporting bars for supporting a group of cans thereon inindiscriminately timed arrangement, a vertically disposed helical cancarrier associated with said canway for collectively transportingsaidcans therealong, said can carrier including a plurality of helicallytrending parallel carrier bars interposed in the intervening spacesbetween said can supporting bars, and drive means for verticallyreciprocating said carrier bars and rotatively oscillating the sameabout the axis of said canway in timed relation to move the carrier barsin a circuitous path extending alternately above and below said cansupporting bars into and out of supporting engagement with a group. ofcans thereon whereby to successively and collectively lift the cans fromthe supporting bars, carry them bodily thereover, and lower them backonto the supporting bars in recurrent cycles.

18. In a combined cooking and cooling apparatus, a cooker, a cooler,means in said cooker and cooler respectively for receiving and advancingcans therethrough, means for feeding cans to the cooker, means fortransferring cans from the cooker to the cooler in untimed relation,means for driving said can advancing means and said feed and transfermeans, and means for varying the speed of the can advancing means in thecooker independently of the speed of the can advancing means in thecooler and of the feed and transfer means.

19. In acombined cooking and cooling apparatus, a cooker, a cooler,means in said cooker and cooler respectively for receiving and advancingcans therethrough in indiscriminately timed arrangement, means forfeeding cans to the cooker in indiscriminately timed arrangement, meansfor transferring cans from the cooker to the cooler in indiscriminatelytimed arrangement, means for driving said can advancing means and saidfeed and transfer means, and means for varying the speed of the canadvancing means in the cooker independently of the speed of the canadvancing means in the cooler and of the feed and transfer means.

20. In a combined cooking and cooling apparatus, a cooker, a cooler,means in said cooker and cooler respectively for receiving and advancingcans therethrough in indiscriminately timed arrangement, means forfeeding cans to the cooker in indiscriminately timed arrangement, meansfor transferring cans from the cooker to the cooler in ALBERT R.THOMPSON.

